The use of radio frequency identification (RFID) devices (e.g., RFID tags, RFID labels, RFID chips, RFID straps, or RFID inlays) is growing rapidly, with RFID devices utilized in a wide variety of applications. However, one challenge associated with RFID devices is the manufacture and testing of the RFID devices in a high-volume and cost-effective manner.
For example, a conventional method of testing RFID devices during the manufacturing process involves bi-directional communication with each of the RFID devices at one or more defined frequencies and radio frequency power levels. However, the bi-directional communication technique of activating and reading the complete response from the RFID device is time consuming and requires a specialized RFID reader that is expensive and may not be optimized for rapid testing. Furthermore, because the RFID reader is expensive, the number of RFID readers is typically limited and utilized sparingly to serially test the RFID devices, with each of the RFID devices sequentially positioned into test position or the RFID reader sequentially moved from one RFID device to the next in a designated test area. Thus, the testing process may be limited in terms of the number of RFID devices that can be tested in a cost effective manner.
Another challenge associated with RFID devices is the handling (or classifying) of RFID devices that are tested and found to be defective. For example, the RFID devices may be manufactured or otherwise closely positioned on a roll or sheet of material (e.g., a carrier web or roll format). If the defective RFID device is not identified and/or discarded (e.g., destroyed) in some fashion, a purchaser of the roll of RFID devices may attempt to utilize the defective RFID device (e.g., to associate the RFID device with a product for inventory tracking purposes), with undesirable consequences. As a result, there is a need for improved test techniques for RFID devices and procedures for handling defective RFID devices.